Apple Watch Users Claim Workout App Is Now Worse in Every Way

[TriBruin]

Haha, we're not THAT frustrated. Nobody's gonna sell us any Garmins until they can do contactless payments, stream our music, do phone calls, texts, email, alert emergency services and loved ones if we fall, and the list goes on.

The higher end Garmin Forerunner has many of the features you are asking for:

Garmin Forerunner 970 | Running Smartwatch with GPS

Forerunner® 970 is a premium running & triathlon watch with a bright display, a speaker & mic, built-in maps, training features, & up to 15 days of battery life.

www.garmin.com

The price is similar an AWU.

That being said, the AppleWatch and Garmin’s are targeted to different groups

AppleWatch - An excellent Smart watch that has some fitness capabilities built in.
Garmin - An excellent Fitness watch that has some smart watch capabilities built in.

 

[neuropsychguy]

Huh, I like this new design better than the old one and find starting workouts easier than before.

 

[btbeme]

This is but one example of how ALL of the new OS's contain ridiculous, frivolous, irritating, unnecessary, made-for-hype changes that decrease functionality at the expense of... what? Entertainment? Gloss?

What a disappointment.

 

[WarmWinterHat]

Yes, it is.

And, why do I need to swipe to the left to end the workout? How about a key press, similar to the lap option to end my workout?

You can pause the workout by hitting the crown and the button below it at the same time, but you still have to swipe to end, and then tap end on the screen.

I absolutely hated, hated, hated having to use the screen! I often run in the rain, or snow, or I was super sweaty, or just got my watch/hands wet when outside, and the touch screen just doesn't work when wet. If I'm in the rain, there is nothing on me that is dry that I can use to wipe the screen.

I gave up after almost seven years of the Apple watch and moved back to Garmin.

Haha, we're not THAT frustrated. Nobody's gonna sell us any Garmins until they can do contactless payments, stream our music, do phone calls, texts, email, alert emergency services and loved ones if we fall, and the list goes on.

To each their own. I did none of that on my Apple Watch, the entire time I owned them. All notifications were disabled, including text and email and I never once used Apple Pay on them. I would sometimes stream music, but I run where there is no cellular service, so it didn't really mater.

I took a phone call on my first Apple Watch, the series 3, one time..when I was on my roof repairing shingles after a storm.

 

[turbineseaplane]

That being said, the AppleWatch and Garmin’s are targeted to different groups

AppleWatch - An excellent Smart watch that has some fitness capabilities built in.
Garmin - An excellent Fitness watch that has some smart watch capabilities built in.

A perfect summary.
It really need not be very polarizing, as it's just making a choice based upon feature needs/wants.

I do wish Apple would make a model with more buttons and a UI built for that as the primary interaction method, at least optionally. It can be WAY quicker to do things when you get the routines memorized/habituated.

 

[pherplexed]

This is one of many reasons so many of us use Garmins for fitness oriented smartwatches.

(ample real buttons and button driven interfaces -- optionally even on most/all AMOLED models)

I switched from Garmin and I do miss several aspects of it - better running metrics for track workouts, much more customizable, and of course, actual buttons.

But as frustrated as I am with the Apple Watch UX, it has never frozen up on me or just up and cut off for no reason during an actual run, race, etc. That's happened to me several times with Garmin...which is why I ultimately left for AWU.

 

[Astuces iOS]

I LOVE WATCHOS 18

 

[ForkHandles]

Absolute poppycock

I go for a run, at some point my watch says, "You're running, want me to record it?" I click a big pill button. Job done.

I go cycling, at some point my watch says, "You're cycling, want e to record it for you?" I click big green pill button. Job done.

I go hiking, at some point my watch says "You're walking, want me to record it for you?" No Godammit, I'm hiking, I need altitude here.

The new interface is fine, stop complaining and get you're backsides back in your training shoes.

 

[Sean Patrick]

I'm a mountain biker and watch OS 26 has been terrible. The wrist detection during an activity is completely broken. When I'm riding downhill trails my body is shaking around quite a bit and it stops recording as it thinks I took my watch off. It's super frustrating getting home and finding my watch only recorded a third of my activity.

 

[turbineseaplane]

This is but one example of how ALL of the new OS's contain ridiculous, frivolous, irritating, unnecessary, made-for-hype changes that decrease functionality at the expense of... what? Entertainment? Gloss?

What a disappointment.

All these changes help us "focus on our content", remember?

 

[CharlesShaw]

The higher end Garmin Forerunner has many of the features you are asking for:

Garmin Forerunner 970 | Running Smartwatch with GPS

Forerunner® 970 is a premium running & triathlon watch with a bright display, a speaker & mic, built-in maps, training features, & up to 15 days of battery life.

www.garmin.com

The price is similar an AWU.

That being said, the AppleWatch and Garmin’s are targeted to different groups

AppleWatch - An excellent Smart watch that has some fitness capabilities built in.
Garmin - An excellent Fitness watch that has some smart watch capabilities built in.

Thanks. It's good to know that all the Garmin users are watching out for us Apple Watch users. A bit predatory at times, but it's nice that you care enough to keep us constantly informed of Garmin.

 

[juanpitillo]

I agree… starting a workout has a lot more friction than it used to have.

 

[polaris20]

I'm a triathlete. It is. And let me explain why. Do note, some of this stuff has been carried over for many years.

I'm a middle aged dude with a dad bod. But I agree completely. I do work out every day, and switch between 2-3 different exercises (treadmill, outdoor, elliptical, weight lifting) and it's REALLY frustrating to use now. And it already was frustrating.

 

[chrono1081]

My biggest annoyance is starting a workout only to find out in never started, and instead it wants me to choose "Open Goal, Timed Goal (or whatever it is), and something else".

If I hit start, start.

 

[The Game 161]

Can be frustrating at times where sometimes click the wrong one but Apple Watch is in a league of its own so we have no choice but to hope it gets better

 

[ForkHandles]

I switched from Garmin and I do miss several aspects of it - better running metrics for track workouts, much more customizable, and of course, actual buttons.

But as frustrated as I am with the Apple Watch UX, it has never frozen up on me or just up and cut off for no reason during an actual run, race, etc. That's happened to me several times with Garmin...which is why I ultimately left for AWU.

Garmin is, by a long way, the best training watch out there. Apple is, by a long way, the best fitness watch. I got so fed up of running a half marathon at relaxed pace just for Garmin to say "Unproductive!" Whereas I stand up 13 times a day and Apple Watch goes mad with fireworks! Love it.

 

[turbineseaplane]

I switched from Garmin and I do miss several aspects of it - better running metrics for track workouts, much more customizable, and of course, actual buttons.

But as frustrated as I am with the Apple Watch UX, it has never frozen up on me or just up and cut off for no reason during an actual run, race, etc. That's happened to me several times with Garmin...which is why I ultimately left for AWU.

Sorry to hear about that.
I think I've that happen to me one time in my 3 years so far.

If it happened more often, I agree it would be a problem for me for sure.

 

[macdaddy43]

Absolutely agree with this. It’s unnecessarily more complex and difficult to do the same thing now seemingly for the sake of ‘new’.

Hopefully they make tweaks to this but I am not going to hold my breath.

 

[WWP99]

Brutal. Designer(s) should be fired.

 

[ProbablyDylan]

WatchOS 26 is a dumpster fire. Workouts is especially egregious - first day after updating, I couldn't figure out how to change what workout I was doing! It's the same as it ever is (scrolling) however, there was no visual indication that there was anything I could scroll up or down to besides the scrollbar, which fades after a moment.

We strapped these humongous screens to our wrists and the geniuses in Cupertino decided they don't want to utilize them effectively.

 

[wgaller]

Current UI seems over complicated, but my big complaint is the Monthly Challenges. I have had a watch since Series 1, and most days close all rings. Here's couple of recent monthly challenges I've received:

Reach your daily move goal 3 times in a month
Do 3 indoor cycling workouts
Reach your daily move goal 1 time in a month

It's like there is no accounting for actual activity.

 

[Mr. Nice]

…

There's probably more, which I will add to this list.

In general, it is clear that the Workout app is handled by a design and engineering team which have no idea or interest in what athletes need. It's disappointing. And third-party alternative apps are not much better. Every day I'm inching closer to getting a Garmin or Coros.

I'm still shocked that after running on a treadmill, you can't correct the distance on the Apple Watch at the end!

Apple's programmers are probably not athletes themselves.

I won't even get started on features that allow you to assign your runs to your shoes (Garmin calls this “equipment”) to track the kilometers.


But don't cry about it,
We have the Workout Buddy 🤦🏻‍♂️

 

[mrapplecored]

Totally agree! The new interface is a big MISS as what was once intuitive almost and quick is now a slower process. Riding a bike and then remembering that you for forgot to start your Sport mode and then having to hunt around on your wrist is annoying... you have to stop, focus on getting the right sport to appear, then start with the small GO button! Swimming is equally frustrating! Skiing? Forget it!

 

[I7guy]

This is one of many reasons so many of us use Garmins for fitness oriented smartwatches.

(ample real buttons and button driven interfaces -- optionally even on most/all AMOLED models)

Some of us didn’t buy an Apple Watch for the fitness app. I don’t record my workouts, so I don’t care about the fitness app. But I do care about nearly every other aspect of the integration to the iPhone.

 

[AnTaR3s]

I wholeheartedly agree. I hated the new Workout app layout the moment I first tried it...!